Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Brown, I am pleased that you mentioned the science, because the science shows that if you want to look after biodiversity, if you want to look after carbon sequestration—which I know that you are quite passionate about—you will have long-term rotation in native forests. That is what the science says. The science is correct and the science is quite clear: if you want to look after biodiversity, if you want to look after sequestration of carbon, you will have long-term rotation in native forests. The science is very clear. Yet we have this confused and conflicting position from the Greens continuously on this issue. The only conclusion that you can come to is that they are anti-forestry.

I did not want to get this into an utterly political process here this morning, but I have because of the assertions and allegations that were made by Senator Brown about the motives of the coalition. We support fully a thorough investigation of this by the Environment Protection Authority in Tasmania, utilising the best scientists, and understanding the science which, as we all agree, is quite new. These are new developments. So I support that process and it should be allowed to run its course. If then there are proved to be issues that need to be dealt with by this place, come back and have a talk to us, because I am more than happy to talk to you about it. I think that is appropriate. But let us get the science dealt with before we deal with the politics.